Yakima city prosecutors say serial dog hoarder could face jail time

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YAKIMA, Wash. -- The latest raid on Evelyn Dauenhauer's home was much smaller than the first.

This time, almost 20 dogs were taken from a pickup in Union Gap. The last time, it was nearly 50 dogs from a home in Yakima. That was two years ago.

It resulted in multiple charges of animal cruelty that were eventually either dropped or pleaded down to lesser charges. She served no jail time, but was given probation and ordered to pay a fine.

"We felt that what we were recommending was fair and appropriate based on the facts and the circumstance at that time," said Senior Assistant City Prosecutor Cynthia Martinez.

Yakima also told Dauenhauer she can't have more than three dogs. But Animal Control took nearly 20 dogs from her vehicle.

Union Gap police say she'd been evicted from her home and was keeping her dogs in the pickup. No charges are expected because Dauenhauer was compliant in surrendering the dogs and they didn't appear mistreated.

In a statement, Union Gap Police Sgt. Chase Kellogg says he was unaware of Dauenhauer's probation but that Animal Control let the Yakima City Prosecutor's Office know about the latest incident.

KIMA asked, "Now that you have the incident report, will you look into this case?"

"Yes, yes, we were planning on doing that anyway," said Martinez. "There was some confusion about whether she was still under the jurisdiction of the court, but it appears she is."

If Yakima determines Dauenhauer broke her probation, she could face jail time.

"We would definitely be asking for jail time, I can tell you that much," said Martinez.

Yakima city prosecutors say they could see Dauenhauer in court in about a month if they feel she violated her probation.